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The Most Useful Windows Keyboard Shortcuts

Windows may be designed for touchscreens, but thanks to a slew of keyboard shortcuts it's easy to bypass touch and use a just keyboard and mouse. These shortcuts let you do things on your computer by using keys instead of clicking on drop down menus and can save you a bit of time and effort.

Here are some good ones to remember, along with several important carry-overs you may remember from earlier versions of Windows. These are the ones we believe are useful, of the dozens and dozens available, to the broadest range of users.

Windows 8 shortcuts

You can find the full set of Windows 8 keyboard shortcuts on Microsoft.com, but these are the important ones.

Windows key + C – Opens the Charms bar, the menu that pops out from the right of your screen that gives you quick access to Search, Share, Start, Devices and Settings. If you use this shortcut within an app it will open app-specific commands.

Windows key + H — Opens the Share menu for the app you’re using. For example, you could quickly email a listing in the eBay app to your husband before bidding, save a photo or video from your camera app to Evernote or SkyDrive, or share an interesting story from a news app on Facebook through the People tool.

Windows key + I — Opens the Settings charm, which includes often-used functions such as Volume, WiFi Networks and Power.

Windows key + D — Pulls up or hides the Desktop, the mode that most resembles older Windows operating systems. If you’re accustomed to having side-by-side windows open at once—say, Chrome alongside Word—this mode lets you do it.

Windows key + X — Calls up a menu of advanced system tools, such as the Control Panel, Command Prompt, Task Manager and File Explorer.

Ctrl + either the plus (+) or minus (-) signs — Zooms in or out. This is especially helpful to organize the apps pinned to your Start screen. By zooming out you can move an entire block of them at once, instead of app by app.

Windows key + tab—Lets you toggle between all the apps you have open. Keep in mind Microsoft now treats the desktop as an app, so if you’re inside a non-desktop app such as Ebay or Skype and you use this shortcut you can quickly toggle to the desktop (if you have it open).

Alt + F4 — Closes an app you’re using. Windows 8 newbies flipping between apps might find themselves with lots of apps unintentionally kept open. Try out the camera app, for example, and it will stay open if you navigate somewhere else. This shortcut lets you simply shut it down when you’re done using it.

Windows key + the period (.) key — Snaps or docks the app you’re using to the right or left 20% of your screen. Press once for right alignment, twice for left alignment and three times to go back to full screen.

More general Windows

Windows Key + Arrows

From Wes R on March 07, 2013 :: 7:47 am

One of my favorites. Use the down arrow to take a window out of maximized (restore), again to minimize it. Up will maximize the window.
Use left and right to cover only half the screen. Then do the opposite arrow for another window to have them side-by-side
For multiple monitors, Windows Key + Shift + Left/Right will move a window from one monitor to the other.

You're Amazing

End key

From Farrah on November 03, 2014 :: 4:15 am

Hello,

I have a new HP with Windows 8. I am getting used to everything (albeit slowly) and stopped hating all the changes EXCEPT one. On my old computer (windows vista) the End Key would go to the end of the line. On this new computer it moves one space to the right. I know that if I hit CTRL + End it will go to the end of the WORD, but I don’t want that. I want home to go to the beginning of the line and End to end of line. Can someone out there help?

More Windows Logo Key Shortcuts

In Windows 7, you can tile two applications vertically, side by side, so you can easily compare two documents, copy and paste info from one to the other, etc. To use, click somewhere in the application you want on the left half of the screen and press Windows Logo Key + Left Arrow Key. Then click somewhere in the application you want on the right half of the screen and press Windows Logo Key + Right Arrow Key. It will dock on the right half of the screen.

You can maximize either window or resize either or both to leave the tiled look.

Erroneous instruction in your list

Your Key in the list above: “Ctrl + Shift with Start key — Selects all text from the cursor to the beginning of the document.” should have been Ctrl + Shift + Home key. Its opposite, which you have correctly, is Ctrl + Shift + End key.

Use Your PC with Your Keys

From Drew Sherman on February 11, 2017 :: 8:16 pm

Throwing this out for any who are interested. Think you’re as fast & efficient as you can be on the PC? Think again. Take the Challenge to see how you compare at http://www.LeaveTheMouseAlone.com Have fun!

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